It goes without saying that today’s matchup with be the toughest opponent that Mason will face the entire season. As Head Coach Nyla Milleson said on Wednesday, “We’ve got a whole different beast coming in here on Saturday.” It’s a big-time game on a national stage as George Mason (2-3) welcomes in undefeated Ole Miss (5-0) to EagleBank Arena.
Today marks the first time the two schools have ever met, and is the first time that George Mason will face a SEC opponent since 2015. The Patriots hold a 1-8 record all-time against the Southeastern Conference, with their lone victory coming in 1996 against #12 Auburn in overtime in the championship game of the Central Florida Tournament.
The Rebels enter today 5-0, but this is their first road game of the season. Ole Miss’ five victories have come against McNeese State, Kansas, Alcorn State, Mississippi Valley State and Jackson State. It’s a little difficult to get a sense of how difficult their schedule has been up to this point, as their combined opponents’ record is 6-14. The lone opponent the Rebels have face with a winning record has been Kansas who sits at 4-1. Both McNeese State and Alcorn State are un-victorious though nine combined games, and Mississippi Valley State and Jackson State each have just one win thus far.
Nevertheless, Ole Miss is an imposing foe to say the least. The Rebels have four players averaging in double-figures offensively: Shakira Austin leads the team in scoring at 16.0 points per game. In addition, Donnetta Johnson adds 14.0 points, Madison Scott 13.2 points and Snudda Collins with 10.2 points.
If that wasn’t enough to intimidate you, Shakira Austin is ranked as ESPN’s #1 rated transfer in the nation, coming from just up the road in College Park where she played for Maryland for a pair of season. In addition, Austin was named to the Preseason All-SEC Team and the Lisa Lesile Watch List which recognizes the top center in the nation.
The Rebels also have proven to be one of the nation’s top defensive teams, as they rank 7th nationally in team shooting defense, holding their opponents to just 29.5% shooting from the field. Ole Miss is also the 9th best scoring defense, allowing just 51.2 points per game. Even scarier, Ole Miss ranks 3rd in America in forced turnovers, averaging 25.0 per game, and totaling 125 through five games. They also rank 15th in America in assist to turnover ratio with 1.44. Building off of that, they are 8th in turnover margin at +10.00 per game. And on the offensive end, the Rebels rank 7th an first in the SEC in assists per game at 21.6.
Oh, one more stat to make your eyes pop: Ole Miss is just one of two teams nationally to rank within the top-15 of scoring defense (9th, 51.2 PPG) and scoring offense (14th, 89.6 PPG), the other being the #1 ranked team in the nation, Stanford.
Holy crap man.
There is absolutely no question that George Mason is going to need to put together their best performance of the year if they want to even be within striking distance of this team today. Especially given how fast Ole Miss can start games: the Rebels have trailed for a total of 11 seconds the entire season so far. They have dominated points in the paint, out-scoring their opponents 204-100 in that department. The key for Mason defensively is without a doubt limiting the damage inside. Ole Miss ranks in the lower-half of the nation in threes attempted per game, so you’d have to imagine Mason’s going to play a game of averages and try to force the Rebels to shoot over their defense and just try their damnedest not to get burnt inside.
Daijah Jefferson is going to need to put together her best defensive performance of her career, as will Jazmyn Doster and Devyn Wilson. Man this is a game you’d really love to have Camarie Gatling back for, but as she has yet to make an appearance this season, I’d say it’s unlikely. I wish I could say I was a little more optimistic about Mason’s chances in this game, but it really looks like the Patriots are walking into a buzz-saw. I’d love to be wrong, especially with the game being televised on national television, the first such non-conference game for George Mason since…well I couldn’t find out when, but lets just say at the very least, it’s been a while.
Tipoff is set for noon, and the game will be nationally televised on CBS Sports Network called by Julianne Viani and Ed Cohen. See you there.
